To Converse with One in Slumber
by LoLoGreeneVines
Summary: Sometimes the best thing to do when Ichigo is around is to pretend to be asleep.


Uryu heard a distant door slam and bolted upright from his slight slouch, sitting with his back to the wall. Recognising Ichigo's distinctive spiritual pressure approaching he folded up the fabric he was attempting to sew into a cape and hurriedly placed it down on the floor next to him, curled up on his side and closed his eyes. As an afterthought he removed his glasses, gently setting them down on top of his fabric and had just finished returning his arm into a pose he dearly hoped would make him look as though he were asleep, when Uryu heard the door to the room he was in banging open.

"Hey, Uryu!" Ichigo exclaimed. Uryu winced involuntarily, hoping his slight twitch wouldn't give him away. _Nah, _he thought, _Ichigo's too clueless to have picked up on that._

"Uryu?" Ichigo's voice asked, as Uryu held his breath. _Go away,_ Uryu mentally yelled at the noisy distraction.

"Come on, man, I know you're awake..." Ichigo said, and Uryu felt the tornado of Ichigo's boisterous presence getting even nearer. Uryu let out a light snore.

"I guess you really are asleep, huh?" Ichigo said. By this point, it sounded as though he were only a couple of feet away. "Oh well, I just wanted to talk to somebody. All this training has worn me out."

_You, talk?_ Uryu mentally snapped. _When do you ever talk? If you're really that desperate for somebody to discuss your training with, go and find Orihime. I'm sure she'd love to hear it._

"Yeah," Ichigo continued. "You know, my inner hollow told me that a person could be completely turned into a hollow if they were to bury an acorn which had fallen from an oak tree by a bend in a river during the full moon. You're clever, I wanted to debate the logistics with you," he finished.

_On second thoughts, I wouldn't wish that discussion on poor Orihime. Even _she _isn't that odd._

"But I guess I can't if you're asleep," Ichigo continued cheerfully. Uryu heard the sound of a body sinking down to the floor against the wall by his feet. _Leave me alone, pest,_ he thought.

"You look weird without your glasses on, Uryu," Ichigo said as Uryu clenched his teeth. _You're a fine one to talk about looking weird, Carrot Head._

"Hey, what's this thing you're sewing?" Ichigo asked. "What's this one, a skirt?" Uryu heard Ichigo shuffling around next to him. _No, moron, it's a cape. You might be perfectly fine with the notion of charging into battle half-dressed but some of us actually care about being properly outfitted at all times. Also, it has the advantage of providing some extra warmth when it's cold, we don't all have extra layers of absurdly large muscles to keep us warm. Also, if you scratch my glasses there'll be hell to pay._

"Well, I'm sure it'll look lovely on Orihime," Ichigo said, happily.

_It's not _for _Orihime, stupid. It's for me._ "Or is there something you haven't told us, Uryu?" Ichigo's voice finished. It took all the self-control Uryu had to prevent himself from springing up and knocking Ichigo out.

_Yes, there's definitely something you're missing, _Uryu thought. _Actually, just make that pretty much everything._

"You know, Uryu, you're always trying your hardest to be distant with us," Ichigo said softly. "If I didn't know any better I'd say you didn't like us."

_It's not that I dislike you, it's more to do with the fact that the more time I spend with you, Ichigo, the more I want to shoot you._

"Nah, I know you like us really," Ichigo said happily. "Why else would you be so willing to go charging off with us whenever somebody's in danger, even if they're your 'enemies'?" _Yeah, yeah, can I please just get back to my sewing now? Your very presence is wearing me out._

Instead of leaving, Ichigo continued, speaking in a flat voice. "I probably wouldn't be saying this if you were awake, Uryu, but Orihime's been nagging me to be nicer to you so I'll just say this: I do consider you to be a good friend. You're a valuable asset to our team and I don't know what we'd do without you, blah blah blah."

Despite the fact that Ichigo sounded particularly bored, Uryu felt his mouth turning up into a slight grin. _Your story is too long_, he thought, slowly stretching out his leg until he felt his foot gently connect with Ichigo's leg. Ichigo chuckled softly.

_Idiot._


End file.
